Evaporator unit



Oct. 15, 1929. R, M, HYDE 1,731,575-

' EVAPORAI'OR UNIT Filed Sept. 22, 1927 Patented a. 15, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT o p ROLLTN M. HYDE, OE DETROIT; MICHIGAN, ASS IGN OR TO MCOORD RADIATOR & MFG. (30.,

OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION OF MAINE EVAJPORATOR UNIT Application filed September 22, 1927, serial No. 221,160.

This invention relates v to refrigerating units, and more particularly to evaporators for use in direct expansion refriger' atlng systems.

.The evaporator unit contemplated by my.

invention is made in sections, and one object of my invention is to make each section of sheet metal so as to reduce the weight of the entire unit, as well as lessen the cost of making the same.

Another object of my invention is to make each section of the unit from a single blank of sheet metal which after being cut and formed as required is folded on itself to provide the front and rear walls of the section,

which walls are connected together about their edges to seal the sections against leakage of the refrigerant which is circulated through them.

A further object of my invention is to provide each. section with extended heat radiating flanges-about the edges where the walls of the sections are secured together, and to have the'flanges' where the fold is made of greater extent than the others so as to have a larger radiating surface at the place where the unit. encounters the colder strata of a1r and thus produce a more eflicient evaporator.

A further object of my invention isto pro vide the sections on their opposite sides with 'tubular bosses which are pressed out of the metaLvvalls of the respective :sections, and

which bosses are disposed to contact with each other for spacing the sections apart so that air may freely circulate between them. I

A further object of my inyention is to pro-' vide the bosses with interfitting nipples by which the sections are connected together and by which communication is provided be tween them fdr the refrigerant flow.

A further object of my invention is to provide the refrigerant circulating passages or channels in each section immediately about and surrounding the chilling opening or open- 1 channels by pressing or stamping half portions of them out of the opposedwalls of the sections. i 1

The invention consists ,further in the of the several sections contact at,their opposed ings therein and to make said passages or matters hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a front view of an evaporator unit constructed in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the unit;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1; 1

Fig. this an enlarged horizontal sectional view taken on line 44 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a view showin a section in blank form prior to being folde As shown in the drawings, the evaporator unit of my invention comprises two or more sections 1., 1 preferably vertically disposed and joined together to complete the unit. Each section" has front and rear walls 2, 3

stamped or pressed from sheet metal to the shape desired, and having withinthe margins thereof one or more openings 4, 5. The sections are arranged with their respective openings 4, 5 in alignment to form the chilling compartments of the unit. The openin s are made of such size and shape as to readi y receive and accommodate the chillin trays 6 as employed in units of this genera character,

Ea section 1 is provided between its front and rear walls 2, 3 with refrigerant circulat ing passages or channels7, 7 which extend about the openings 4,5 in close proximity thereto. Each section 1 is further provided with outwardly projecting bosses 8,8 on its front and rear walls 2, 3, and these bosses are pressed out of these walls and are disposed'on opposite sides of the section. The bosses 8, 8

ends and serve to space the sections apart so tnat air ma freely flow over and between the sections. he bosses have nipples 9, 9 by means of which the sections are secured together at the bosses and provide'communica- '90 tion between the channels 7, 7 of the sections.

The bosses 8, 8 open into the channels 7, 7 of the respective sections and thus permit the refrigerant to flow through all the sections of the unit as'well as through all of the channels thereof. The inlet and outlet pipes 10, 11 forthe unit are preferably connected with two of the bosses 8, 8 of the unit so that the refrigerant may be circulated through the unit, as snown 1n Fig. 2. As shown in Fig. 4, the

nipples 9 of-the bosses on one side of the section extend into the bosses, while on the other side-the nipples project outside of.the bosses. This allows the outwardly projecting nipples of one section to extend into the inwardly extending nipples of the adjoining section in connecting the sections together. These nipples are made to fit one within the other and by theircontact seal the connections between 10 the sections. The op osed end surfaces bof the bosses about the nipples also connect and these surfaces together with the contacting surfaces of; the nipples provide a relatively large contact for the sections at each of the bosses and thus make a perfect'seal to provide against leakage of the refrigerant pass- 'ing through the bosses.

Each section 1 is formed from a single blank of sheet metal, as shown in Fig. 5. The blank is of a size, to include both the front and rear walls 2, 30f the section. The blank is pierced to provide all the holesrequired to form the openings 4, 5 of the section, and is also formed to provide the bosses 8, 8 and their nipples 9-, 9.

The blank is also formed to provide the passages or channels 7, 7, these being pressed out of the metal of the blank about each .of the openings 4, 5 therein inhalf section, which register to complete the ,channels on the folding of the blank. The lineof fold a is lengthwise of. the blank substantially midway between the portions of the blank forming the front and 'rear walls of'the section, as shown in Fig. 5. i

Thefolded blank is secured about its outer edges and also about the edges of its openings 1 4, 5 either by welding or lock-seaming. The latter type of connection is shown in the drawings. It comprises forming outwardly extending flanges 12, 13 on the two halves of the blank about these edges and bending and pressing tne outer margins of the flanges 12 over the flanges 13; as shown in Fig. 3. The

flanges 12, 13 provideextended heat radiating surfaces about these outer edges of the section,

as well as about the edges of the openings 4, 5 r and thus increase the heat transferfrom the section-to the surrounding atmosphere to produce a more eflicient device. 5 of the blank where it is folded on itself to form the front and rear walls 2, 3 is considerably wider than the flanges 12, 13, and, in addition to integrally connecting said front and rear walls, provides a greater heat radiating surface than afforded by the balance of the flangeson the section. The ends of the ,folded section 14 are closed by flanges 14 integral with one half of the section and folded over the other around the adjacent ends thereof, as shown in Fig. 1.

In use, the unit is located in the desired compartment of the refrigerator with the folded portions 14 of the several sections 1, 1 extending downward so as to be in the colder strata of air and thus be most effective.

Theportion 14 In operation, refrigerant enters the unit at 10 under considerable pressure and in the unit is allowed to-expand, there being an expansion valve (not shown) in the supply line 10 just ahead of the unit. The pressure being released, the refrigerant expands in the unit, recovering its specific heat. The temperature of this expanded refrigerant is lower than the air surrounding the unit and extracts heat therefrom and lowers the tem 5 perature ofthe refrigerator compartment in which the unit is located. The refrigerant collects in the lower portions of the channels. 7, making the lower portion of the unit its coldest part. The natural circulation of air about and between the sections of the unit is from top to bottom, the warmer air ascending and the colder air descending. This makes the coldest strata of-air along the bottom of the unit, and by having thelarger 35 heat radiating surfaces 14 of considerable area and extending downward they will be located in this cold strata of air so as to most effectively absorb heat therefrom and lower the temperature of the refrigerator. In practice, the. unit will be suspended in the refrigerator by a number of brackets, (not sh m- 4 In theparticular form of evaporating unit shown in the drawings, the bosses 8, 8 at the opposite ends of the unit are employed as a means of inlet and outlet for the refrigerant, the balance of the openings in the remainder of the bosses on the front and rear sections of the entire assembly being closed and sealed ice by phugsor caps 15, 15. The inlet and outlet conduits 10, 11 for the unit are connected with the bosses at the opposite ends of the rearmost section, as shown in Fig. 2. These conduits could, if desired, be connected with the intermediate bosses on the front and rear jsections depending on the re uirements of the installation. The intermedia e bosses of each sectionare arranged one above the other, and also intersect or communicate with channels 7,7, with which the section is provided. Af- 'ter the unit has been completely assembled with the flanges 9, 9 of the respective bosses pressed one into" the other and the flanges 1 2, 13 of thesections secured together, the

entire assembl is dipped in solder so as to seal all the joints against leakage and bind all the sectionsiof the unit together as one complete device. With the sections of the unit being made .of sheet metal,the entire unit is light in weight and may be made at a minimum cost because the several sections may be stamped or formed in a single operation. Also the sections may be made uniform, thereby giving the entire unit va neat and symmetrical appearance, as well as being compact in form. This is of considerable importance in itself because the unit is not required to occupy a great amount of space in the chamber in which it is inand the like.

Another advantage of my invention resides in the fact that the flanges 12, 13, and 14, which are provided about the inner and outer edges of the sections, provide extended heat radiating surfaces for the sections'at the places where needed and thus render the unit highly efficient. With each section be ing formed from a single blank of sheet metal, the front and rear walls of the section may be stamped in one operation, and thus be kept uniform and be made to properly fit one against the other with their respective parts in proper registration on final assembly. With the device sectional, it is much more flexible, in that the number of sections for different units may be varied in accordance with the installation requirements.

The details of structure and arrangement of parts shown and described-may be variously changed and modified without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

I claim as my invention:

1. A refrigerating unit, comprising two or more sections, each section being formed from a single blank of sheet metal folded on itself to provide the sections with foldably connected front and rear walls, the walls of each section having registering grooves and openings therein, the grooves being pressed out of the opposed walls of the sections about the openings therein and forming the refrigerant circulating channels of the sections, and means connecting the sections together and providing communication between the chan nels thereof.

2. A refrigerating unit, comprising two or more sections, each section being formed from a single blank of sheet metal folded on itself to provide the sections with foldably connected front and rear sheet metal walls, the walls of each section having registering grooves and openings therein, the grooves being pressed out of the opposed walls of the sections about the openings therein and forming the refrigerant circulating channels of the sections, and hollow bosses pressed out of the walls of the respective sections on oppositesides thereof and opening into the channels; said bosses being disposed to contact for spacing the sections apart and having interfitting nipples to connect the sections together and communicate the channels.

3. A refrigerating unit, comprising two or more sections, each section having front and rear walls stamped from sheet metal with registering grooves and openings therein, the grooves being pressed out of the opposed walls of the sections about the openings therein and forming the refrigerant circulating channels of the sections, the walls of the several sections being flanged and secured together about their outer edges and about the edges of their registering openings, the flanges along one of the outer edges of each section having a greater width than the re maining flanges of the section.

4. A refrigeratingv unit, comprising two or more sections, each section being formed from a single blank of sheet metal folded on itself to provide the sections with foldably connected front and rear walls having registering grooves and openings'therein, the grooves being pressed out of the opposed walls of the sections about the openings therein and forming the refrigerant circulating channels of the sections, the folded portion of the blank of each section constituting an enlarged heat radiating surface for the section.

5. A refrigerating unit, comprising two or more sections, each section being formed from a single blank of sheet metal folded on itself to provide the sections with foldably connected front and rear sheet metal walls, the walls of each section having registering grooves and openings therein, the grooves being pressed out of the opposed walls of the section about the openings therein and forming the refrigerant circulating channels of the section, the walls of each section being secured together about their-outer edges and about the edges of the openings therein,-hollow bosses pressed out of the walls of the sections on opposite sides thereof and having abutting contact at their outer ends for spacing the sections apart, and interfitting nipples on the respective bosses for connecting the sections together and continuing the contact surfaces of the bosses along thev nipples.

6. A refrigerating unit, comprising two or more sections, each section having front and rear sheet metal walls with registering grooves and openings therein, the openings being in offset relation and the grooves surrounding the same and forming .the refrigerant circulating channels of the sections, hollow bosses pressed out of the walls of the respective sections on opposite sides thereof for spacing the sections apart, the bosses of each section opening into the channels thereof with certain of the bosses arranged at opposite ends of the section and the others intermediate said ends, and interfitting nipples on the respective bosses for connecting the sections together and communicating the channels thereof.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

ROLLIN M.- HYDE. 

